Honors Profiles STUDENT PROFILE: JANE H. KIM By Eric Gamboa Second-year plant biology major and Honors student Jane Hannah Kim has set the bar for scholas c achievement with her recent acceptance of numerous awards including the Frank Cozza Agriculture Scholarship, a grant from the Hasegawa Memorial Fund, the 2012 Science Circle Award in Excellence and a summer research opportunity with UC LEADS (UC Leadership Excellence through Advanced Degrees). “I love to explore and learn new concepts that were once foreign to me. It is amazing just how much we don’t know about the world—how it works and why it works in that way—
and how much we don’t know about ourselves,” stated Kim in an interview with the Honors Outlook. Kim explained that her interest in research first began with the CNAS Summer Rise Program, which served as the founda on for her research with Plant Physiology Professor Eugene Nothnagel. Since then, Jane has a ended na onal conferences, joined the American Chemical Society and has connued to pursue her fascinaon with the natural sciences. “I have developed a passion for research to the point that I am now considering it a possible career path…[Doing research] opened a lot of doors for me, doors that I knew I could not have opened by my-
self,” stated Kim, who hopes to someday be a medical researcher. “I wish to be on the fron er of the new wave of medical treatments and drugs that will focus on working with chronic diseases and illnesses,” added Kim. Her progress toward this goal has been greatly supplemented by her aforemenoned awards and recognions. Combined, the three scholarships amount to more than $4,000 and will be used to support Kim’s undergraduate career and research involvement. Meanwhile, UC LEADS will allow Kim to spend this summer at UCR con nuing her research with Dr. Nothnagel and spend next summer at UC San Francisco.
STUDENT PROFILE: ELIZABETH TIZCARRENO
By Anissa Monteon Whether it be an interest in the natural sciences or humani es, Honors students are always immersing themselves in their respec ve fields of interest. One such student is third-year student Elizabeth
Tizcarreno, a third-year environmental science and women’s studies double major, who is involved with Gender Dialogues at UCR. Gender Dialogues at UCR is sponsored by Diversity Ini aves and allows a group of students to meet once a week for five weeks in order to discuss the dynamics of gender identy, social jus ce, sexuality and other topics. The focus of the program is to have par cipants gain a be er understanding and apprecia on of themselves and their peers in a safe learning environment. Tizcarreno stated that she first joined Gender Dialogues “to learn how to use dialogue in a student-led seminar using feminist cri cal pedagogy.”
Through the use of media, interac ve ac vi es and personal stories, students are encouraged to explore topics of similari es and differences between their experiences as members of a gender. Another benefit of the program, as explained by Tizcarreno, was that students are able to become more cri cal thinkers and improve their listening and communica on skills—skills that can be advantageous in every other aspect of life. Tizcarreno first joined the Gender Diaogues a er a ending Common Ground events in fall of 2011. Common Ground is a union of numerous campus departments (such as Ethnic and Gender Programs, Diversity Ini a ves and The Well)
that host events with the aim of promo ng unity among students. When Tizcarreno is not involved with Gender Dialogues, she can be found gardening and a ending Cul vate R’Space mee ngs.
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